Here's Why The 2017 Jaguar XJ Still Matters Despite Its Age

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8 years old is a long time in this business.

Take one look at the 2017 Jaguar XJ and you know it’s special. And, perhaps even more evidently, it’s a big sucker. We’re talking about Jaguar’s flagship luxury sedan that competes directly against the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. But here’s the thing: unlike its German and American (Cadillac CT6) rivals, the XJ is old. Like eight years old. In the car business that’s literally called retirement, but Jaguar has a habit of keeping its cars on sale for quite some time.

Fortunately Jaguar updated the XJ for 2016 and we got our hands on the 2017 XJ R-Sport, a 3.0-liter supercharged V6-powered beast of a thing. Sure, you could go for the optional 5.0-liter supercharged V8 but that’ll add both weight and price. So, perhaps, the V6 could be the way to go for many, and we weren’t at all dissatisfied with it.

Power is sent to the rear wheels directly via an eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters. Aside from its years on the market, the XJ is still a fine and fun to drive large luxury sedan that we don’t see enough of. For example, the Mercedes S-Class outsells the XJ six to one in the US. And that’s a shame because there are few big sedans out there as gorgeous as this. Special thanks to Niello Jaguar- Sacramento for letting us film the car.